Virtual Reference Discussion Forum: What's Next for Virtual Reference

The VRDG invites you to attend the Virtual Reference Discussion Forum, featuring Courtney Young, from Penn State Greater Allegheny. We welcome questions and discussion points, and invite you to submit those via commenting here or on the Facebook Event page. Courtney will attempt to answer as many as possible

Reference services are about connecting library users to the information they need. Traditionally, there have been conversational exchanges between a librarian and a patron in a library building. The tradition of librarian and patron has remained, but the exchange location has not only changed but continues to be a moving target. What technologies will increasingly have an effect on the way we design and deliver virtual reference services? How do the internet and mobile web allow librarians to provide services, anticipate needs and embed information resources in the landscape beyond library walls? What does this mean for the future of reference services?

Courtney Young, Head Librarian at Penn State Greater Allegheny and member of the Penn State University Libraries Virtual Reference Services Team, will begin the discussion by forecasting how virtual reference services will collide and increasing impact traditional reference services. We will then discuss Courtney's ideas and other emerging technologies for virtual reference.